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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23443249">piece by piece</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/orangecherry/pseuds/orangecherry'>orangecherry</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon Compliant, Family Dynamics, Fluff and Angst, Haircuts, M/M, Pining</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 13:13:22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,641</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23443249</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/orangecherry/pseuds/orangecherry</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>tadashi gets a haircut from someone who looks awfully like his vice-captain, the one he has a big fat crush on.</p><p>(or tadashi learns something about kageyama that unexpectedly changes them both for the better.)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kageyama Tobio/Yamaguchi Tadashi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>83</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>piece by piece</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>tadashi needs a haircut. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>hinata was the first one to notice, was the one who told him that morning that his hair looks long enough to tie. to which yachi agreed, prompting the two to spend the rest of their study session tying his hair with the hair ties that had adorned yachi's wrist. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>at first, he didn't notice. but they were right, his hair has grown past the length he usually kept it. it hadn't been a bother, since he's picked up the habit of wearing a headband in his second year to keep himself from fussing over his hair during training and actual games. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>still, when lunch time rolled in, he made a call to his usual barbershop to set an appointment. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"tadashi, the barbershop called. something came up, so they're closing early."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>tadashi frowns. he was in the middle of tying his shoelaces, about to head out to catch his 5 pm appointment. if he won't be able to get a haircut today, he'll have to wait another two weeks until he can squeeze it in.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>his mother ruffles his hair, and he looks up to see her dial a number into their wireless phone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"hi. good afternoon, sakamoto-san." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>he ties the shoelaces on his right shoe while he waits, picking up bits of the conversation his mother was having.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"oh, that would be great! he'll be at your shop in twenty minutes." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>from what he remembers, sakamoto-san is his mother's hairdresser. his mother has long, curly hair that she meticulously maintains. and sakamoto-san had been taking care of her hair since she was in college. tadashi's been to her shop a couple of times, and he knows they don't cut mens' hair. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"thank you so much. i'll see you next week." his mother ends the call, giving him a hand to pull him up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"sakamoto-san has a new stylist who can cut your hair. you know where her shop is, right?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>he nods, picking up his bag from the stool he dropped it. the shop is a fifteen minute bus ride away from their house, and he could walk there except he’d get an earful from his mom if she finds out he was late for the appointment. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"okay, go. i'll see you later." his mom squeezes his hand before pushing him out the door and walking back to the kitchen.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>today is one of those rare saturdays they have off from training. ever since that fiasco back in their first year when hinata and kageyama both failed a final exam each, takeda-sensei has been strictly enforcing measures to prevent that from ever happening to hinata, kageyama or any other member of the team.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>one of the things in that lengthy list is group study saturdays. and in their case, the study sessions are held in his house, ever since they became a formal thing. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>back in middle school, it'd only been him and tsukki, which was comfortable to say the least. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>kei had always been smarter than he was, and he's always been thankful for that. it was comforting to know that his best friend knew more than he did, that tadashi can ask him something and he'd most likely have the answer. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>things shifted in their first year though, when two became four and four became five. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>it was weird at first. he'd been so used to being the one asking for help -- the most he's done for kei was proofread his essays. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>but when hinata came to him all puppy-eyed, asking tadashi if he could help him solve the problem their algebra teacher gave, he felt something unfamiliar crawl into his chest. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>he felt a sense of pride, because one look at the solution hinata had done so far, and he immediately knew where he was getting it wrong. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>but when kageyema asked him if he had the spare time to go through their literature homework one more time, tadashi short-circuited. up to this day, despite the two years that have gone by, tadashi still cringes at that vivid memory of him not being able to look kageyama directly in the eye without stuttering as he tried to explain the newly taught sentence construction rules in the best way he can. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>it took him a while to realize that his reaction wasn’t because he was scared of kageyama. he wasn’t, and he never really was.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>at most, he was intimidated. because on court, where they’ve had most of their interactions, kageyama was a force to be reckoned with. he’s skilled beyond his years, and tadashi could only watch him from the other side of the court during scrimmages and from the bench during official games.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>he was trying to figure out what it was that drew that kind of response from him when kei caught him in a daze, right in the middle of their passing drills, the ball hitting him square on the head. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>on their walk home that night, tadashi reluctantly divulged to his best friend that there might be someone on the team that he likes. and all it took was kei’s nonchalant response to knock him off his feet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“well, i’m not surprised. the king is your type, isn’t he?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>what follows are two painfully awkward years of crushing on kageyama tobio. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>back then, he believed the feelings would easily fade. after all, he crushes on people left and right. he thought their class president was cute. he had a crush on daichi-san on their first month on the team. he even had a crush on yachi when she was first introduced to the team.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>unfortunately, it’s been two years, and he’d gone from thinking kageyama was good looking to constantly thinking about how hot he'd gotten. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>how could he not when kageyama grew into his body so nicely?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>and he usually keeps the staring at a minimum. even though he'd like to stare at kageyama's thighs a second longer, he looks away as soon as yachi catches on, smirking at him from the bench. and he’s been trying not to peek at kageyama in the locker rooms, because of that one time hinata caught on and wouldn’t stop wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>but everyone seems to be noticing, everyone but kageyama himself. which was great, kageyama didn’t have to know. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>except the second years seem to be conspiring to get them together. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>or at least that's what hinata told him. he'll deal with it when the kids actually act on it. the last thing he wants is an unsolicited grand reveal of the feelings he's been trying to reign in for so long. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>he's positive kageyama wouldn't care, or at least, it won't bother him at all. but that's not what he's worried about, he's worried about himself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>because he knows how awkward he could get around people he likes, and it's honestly a miracle he's managed not to make a fool out of himself yet. kei would disagree, but he's been doing well by his standards. he's fine. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>he runs his hands through his hair, pushing back the strands that have gone limp. he didn't bother styling his hair after taking a bath, because his usual barber would only have to wash his hair when he gets there then wash it again after the haircut. it'd be a hassle.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>sakamoto-san's shop is on the second floor of a relatively old building in the city center. on the ground floor is one of his favorite bakeries, a shop that sold the best melon and curry bread. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>he's been there with tsukki a lot, especially when they were younger. kei likes their strawberry shortcake. he's brought cookies for yachi and hinata one time, and they both loved the white chocolate macadamia cookies. and well, he thinks kageyama will love their curry bread. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>tadashi makes a mental note to buy some treats for everyone. they agreed to meet again the next day at his house, this time to work on projects and papers in hopes that suffering together would actually increase their productivity, in yachi's words not his.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>sakamoto-san's shop is as busy as it usually was, and he's surprised his mother even got him scheduled the last minute. but he guesses that was just the perk of being a long-time client. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"yamaguchi-kun. it's been a while, you've grown so much since i last saw you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>sakamoto-san's smile is still as pleasant as tadashi remembers, warm too. and meeting her had always felt like seeing an aunt who had always doted on him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"sakamoto-san, i was here a few months ago!" he says, earning a laugh from the older lady.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"still!" she says, a knowing smile on her face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"sit there first, miwa-san will join you in a bit. she's only been here a couple of months, but your mom will agree with me when i say she's already one of the best here." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>tadashi nods, making his way towards the chair farthest from the door, carefully avoiding the piles of hair on the ground from ongoing haircuts. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>out of habit, tadashi averts his eyes, looking anywhere but straight into the large mirrors in front of him. he's been getting better at this, really. but it still bothers him. part of the reason why his hair had gotten too long was the fact that he'd been unconsciously avoiding looking himself in the mirror recently. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>it's not a big deal. well, it shouldn't be. but he still finds himself picking apart the things he doesn't like about his face, his body, literally anything that reflects back at him when he stares at a mirror for too long. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>so he just doesn't. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"yamaguchi-san?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>tadashi looks up, eyes widening almost comically. because reflected in the mirror, like a trick of the eye, was a woman with jet black hair and alarmingly familiar blue eyes. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>this idea really stuck to me, and i realized that the only way to deal with it is to write it ksfnjsdf </p><p>thank you for reading!!! </p><p>twitter: @kurodaiquiri</p></blockquote></div></div>
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